


A Heart That Yearns

by Babble



Category: Twin Peaks
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Drama, F/M, No Dark!Cooper, Post Season 2, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:13:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21843481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Babble/pseuds/Babble
Summary: Special Agent Cooper has returned to the town of Twin Peaks, to enjoy a much-needed respite from the stresses of his work at the Bureau. Half a year has passed since the tragic night of Miss Twin Peaks, but the ghosts of the past still haunt Agent Cooper, and he soon discovers that it may take more than a cozy house in the woods to pull him out of the darkness.
Relationships: Dale Cooper/Audrey Horne
Comments: 9
Kudos: 29
Collections: Yuletide 2019





	A Heart That Yearns

**Author's Note:**

  * For [scioscribe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/scioscribe/gifts).



**September, 1989**

Through the frosted window, there were shades of green and blue where the trees met the river shore, and masses of white and gray above. _The clouds, and the sky._ Cooper ran his fingers down the side of the glass, searching. In seconds his efforts were rewarded. He pulled the cheap frosting sticker away from the window and let it flutter to the floor.

"Gorgeous," he said, taking in the exposed view. "Isn't that something, Gordon?"

"THAT IS INDEED REMARKABLE." Gordon set down the last of the luggage by the front door and joined Cooper by the window. He nodded appreciatively. "THIS IS THE TYPE OF HOUSE GREAT MEN WRITE STORIES IN. A VERITABLE ARTIST'S RETREAT, COOP. ARE YOU PLANNING ON PUTTING ANY PENS TO PAPER?"

"I have a mind to let my pen hand rest for a while," Cooper replied with a smile. He watched a flock of birds take flight from a towering oak. "That's the whole idea of this leave of absence, right? Regather my thoughts, rebuild my strength?"

Gordon snorted. "IF YOU ASK ME, YOU'VE ALREADY REGATHERED MORE THOUGHTS THAN ALL THOSE PENCIL-PUSHERS AT THE BUREAU WILL EVER HAVE. BUT IF LIVING IN TWIN PEAKS FOR A WHILE WILL MAKE YOU HAPPY, THEN MORE POWER TO YA, COOP. YOU DESERVE A REST. GET YOURSELF DOWN TO THAT DINER, MINGLE WITH THE LOCALS. GO SEE YOUR BUDDY SHERIFF TRUMAN. HELL, LEARN TO PAINT IF THAT'LL HELP SETTLE YOUR THOUGHTS."

"That's not a bad idea. I've been thinking about Norma's coffee the whole drive up here. Why don't we both go to the Double R and refuel a bit?"

"WOULD THAT I COULD, MY FRIEND. AS FATE WOULD HAVE IT, I ONLY HAD ENOUGH TIME TO DROP YOU OFF AT YOUR BEAUTIFUL NEW HOME. THAT CALL I JUST RECEIVED WAS FROM THE SEATTLE FIELD OFFICE. THE BOYS DOWN THERE WANT ME TO COME TAKE A LOOK AT A CASE THAT'S GOT THEM ALL TWISTED UP."

Cooper raised his brow. "Anything I might be able to help with?"

"YOU'RE OFF THE JOB, COOP, FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE." Gordon put a hand on his shoulder. "BREATHE IN THIS COLD MOUNTAIN AIR AND CLEAR YOUR HEAD OF WINDOM EARLE AND THE BLACK LODGE AND THE BUREAU. LET ME HANDLE ALL THE MADNESS OF THE WORLD, UNTIL YOU'RE READY TO COME BACK TO US. ALRIGHT?"

"Alright." _Probably for the best._ Cooper led Gordon to the front door. Through the little window, the black rental car sat waiting. The moving trailer hitched to the back had been completely emptied. "Drive safe, Gordon. And thanks again for taking me out here. I really think some quiet time in Twin Peaks will do my mind some good."

"OF COURSE IT WILL." Gordon grinned and quickly hugged him. "IF YOU HAPPEN TO ENCOUNTER SHELLY JOHNSON, TELL THAT LOVELY GODDESS SHE STILL HAUNTS MY DREAMS."

"Will do, Gordon." Cooper didn't quite understand his friend's infatuation with the diner waitress, especially given what he'd learned of her during his time in Twin Peaks, but he understood love well enough. "Drive safe!"

Gordon rolled down the driver side window and gave him a thumbs up. "Bye, Coop!"

Out here in the woods, the roads were made of gravel, and the tiny rocks crunched underneath Gordon's tires as he drove down the long driveway. _The sound of freedom._ The rental agent he'd spoken to had shown him more than a few houses available closer to town, but Cooper had decided a more rural experience would be more to his benefit.

Cooper slid his hands into his pockets, took a deep breath, and surveyed his new domain with a smile. Pieces of weathered furniture littered the yard, courtesy of a delightfully quaint store he and Gordon had stopped at on the way. He had only one suitcase of clothes, already inside the house, and the rest of his possessions fit inside a small box. Knick-knacks and souvenirs, for the most part, meant to rest proudly on a desk he'd never got around to owning. All in all, there wasn't much to unpack. Cooper liked to think of himself as a man who needed few material possessions.

The house itself was a cozy little affair: a single-family log bungalow made of hardy walnut, put up just ten or twenty years ago. He'd been told the owner had grown tired of the harsh Twin Peaks winters and had elected to move to Florida and rent out instead. The kitchen was small, and he wasn't going to be fitting many bookshelves in the study, but Cooper thought it sure as hell beat a hotel room. _Even if that room is numbered 315, at the Great Northern._ Benjamin Horne's large hotel was just across the Columbia river. Though he didn't care much for the man himself, the thought of his old home in Twin Peaks being so close to his new one gladdened Cooper's heart.

_Maybe I'll stop by, see if Audrey's back on her feet yet._ The last he'd seen of the girl, she'd been lying comatose in the hospital, all wrapped up in bandages. _A victim of an attack meant for another._ He still felt guilt he hadn't been watching over Audrey more closely. If he'd been at the bank when the bomb went off, maybe more than one life could have been saved. Sheriff Truman had called him a month later to let him know Audrey had woken up, but by then he'd left Twin Peaks in his rear view mirror.

"I find myself at the beginning of a new road, Diane." He hadn't unpacked his tape recorder yet, but Cooper felt that talking to himself would be just a step too far. "I know not where it will take me, but damn if I'm not thrilled to find out. For all my life, I've been a city dweller. I like meeting new people and seeing how they live. But life is a series of experiments, and I'm happy for the change. I'd better get to it, now. The shadows are growing longer, and I imagine nighttime out in these woods is a good deal darker than I'm used to."

As usual, Diane didn't offer a response. Cooper began the arduous task of moving the furniture into the house, after finding a suitably sized rock to prop the front door open. Though years had passed now since the physically demanding trials of his trainee days, he remained in decent shape for a man of 36. It was a good thing, too; this house's only source of heating was an enormous wood stove in the living room, and Cooper had no doubt he'd be feeding the beast forests' worth of logs in the long winter months to come. When he bent down to pick up a folded chair, his fingers brushed against long blades of grass. _Might have to buy a mower._ The excitement threatened to overwhelm him.

By the time he was able to close the door on an empty front yard, sweat was running down Cooper's back and he was nearly panting with exertion.

"Note to self." Cooper steadied himself with the doorknob. "Pick up some dumbbells at earliest convenience. Personal assessment of self fitness may have been somewhat biased."

He went to the kitchen and drank some water from the kitchen tap. It was cold and refreshing. _Mountain water. Delicious._ Cooper hummed in satisfaction and rummaged around in the box on the counter. He took out the phone and plugged it into the socket in the wall, and then dialed a number from memory.

"Hello? Is this Meadow Views hospital?"

"It's me, Agent Cooper," replied the voice. "I do hope you've made it to Twin Peaks alright. Long road trips always make me nervous."

"More than alright! And there's no need to call me agent, at least for the time being. Are your kids doing well, Ruth?"

"They're fine." Ruth sighed. "I suppose you'll be wanting to know about Annie? Well, I can save you the trouble of talking to the doctor. There's been no change. She remains unresponsive."

"I see."

"I'm sorry I don't have better news for you."

"It's not your fault." Cooper closed his eyes. "The powers that took Annie Blackburn from this world are beyond our comprehension, Ruth. I suspect it will take more than the science of man to make her whole again."

"Ah...you may be right, from what I've seen of her. So, will you be wanting to speak to a doctor?"

"No need. I trust your judgement. Thanks for taking the time to speak to me, Ruth. I know you gals have to be busy down there."

"It's no trouble. Have a good day, Agent Cooper. I hope your vacation treats you well."

The line went dead, and the droning beep filled the small kitchen. Cooper let it go on, staring at the useless machine. Annie Blackburn had been gone from his life now for much longer than he'd known her before that fateful night in the forest. His memories of her were already fading, like the words in a book left out in the sun. Some part of Cooper knew Annie died in that forest, and the figure lying catatonic in Meadow Views hospital was at best a shadow left on the wall, marking Annie's final departure. The other part of him was what kept dialing those numbers every week, hoping for good news.

The doorbell rang. _Ah, Sheriff Truman. Just the man to get me out of my own head._ Cooper returned the droning phone to its cradle and hastened to the door, the corners of his mouth already turning up.

He opened the door.

"Special Agent Cooper," Audrey greeted him. "You're gonna need to build a ramp to your door, I think."

Cooper gaped. He could count on one hand the number of times he'd been utterly dumbfounded in his life. The sight of Audrey Horne in a wheelchair, waiting on the lawn of his new home, was definitely giving him a moment of pause.

"A ramp?"

"Uh huh." Audrey smiled, and it was suddenly as if they were in the Great Northern's dining room again, speaking of Laura Palmer and Jack with One Eye. "Or else you'll need to carry me up."

"Audrey," Cooper said, finally getting a hold on himself. "There's something different about you, I think. Have you gotten shorter since we last spoke?"

"It's the shoes." Audrey raised one of her sneaker-clad feet in the air. Cooper couldn't help but trace the curve of her leg with his eyes. "I always wore heels before. Are you going to invite me in, Agent Cooper? Surely you won't leave a young woman outside in the cold."

"I've taken a leave of absence from the Bureau, Audrey. You don't have to call me 'agent' anymore. We're just two civilians, now, having a pleasant conversation."

She rolled her eyes. "It's not as simple as all that, and you know it. You'll always be Agent Cooper to me. Besides, what else would I call you? Dale?"

Cooper raised his brow. "Be careful. Only my mother calls me by my first name."

"I'm not your mother. And I don't wanna be careful." Audrey leaned forward, grinning. "Come on, stop foolin' around. It's getting dark. Who knows what could happen to me out here?"

Apart from his unexpected visitor, the yard was empty, but there were fresh indentations in the gravel road, and the scent of gasoline was fresh in the air.

"How did you get here?"

"My father dropped me off." Audrey pointed towards the treeline. "I live somewhere over there. I'm not exactly sure on the specifics. I haven't been inside my new house yet."

"Why not?" Cooper suspected he already knew the answer.

"I had to come meet my neighbor, of course." Audrey wheeled herself closer to his porch, maintaining eye contact all the way. "It's just the friendly thing to do. If I'd known you were going to be so unwelcoming, I woulda just stayed home."

"Please forgive me, Audrey. You're right." He wiped his hands on his jeans and came down the steps. "Will Mr. Benjamin Horne be joining us?"

"Nope. He had to go to an _important meeting._ "

"Probably for the best. I don't think I have enough chairs for three." To tell the truth of it, an encounter with the Great Northern's slimy owner would have soured the occasion for him.

"Good thing I brought my own." Audrey had seemed confident up to now, but now that Cooper stood before her, her eyes filled with apprehension. "Um. You don't really have to carry me if you don't want to, Agent Cooper. There's a fold-up ramp back at my house."

"No, no. Like you said, it's getting dark. I don't mind helping out an old friend." Cooper knelt down, preparing himself. "That is, as long as you're alright with it."

She pursed her lips, and appraised him for a long moment. Finally she looked away, apparently satisfied, and nodded her head.

Cooper gently slid his left arm under her legs and his right under her shoulders. She wore a frilled red shirt and a plaid skirt, and the materials were soft and warm against his skin. Audrey shivered.

"Cold?"

"Positively frigid." She bit her lip. "Be careful with me, now. I've seen enough of the hospital ceiling to draw a picture from memory. I don't wanna see it again anytime soon."

He lifted Audrey from the chair. She was surprisingly light, all things considered, even after Cooper had spent half the day moving around furniture and luggage. They went up the porch stairs and through the open door.

"Flip the light switch," he said. "It's the one third to the left."

Audrey reached out and did so, and his modest living room was lit up with dim brilliance. It wasn't much to look at, yet, but he was sure he'd fill the space with interesting shapes soon enough. Cooper set her down on the small sofa next to the window. By the time he'd returned with her folded up wheelchair and closed and locked the door behind him, she'd made herself quite comfortable.

"Tired?" Cooper asked, laying her wheelchair down in a secure spot.

"Oh, yes." Audrey reclined on his sofa, stretching out her arms. "Moving is tough work. But I guess you'd know that, wouldn't you? Special Agent Cooper, living in Twin Peaks. It's like a dream come true. I thought I'd never see you again, ya know."

"I came to visit you in the hospital." He took a seat on the armchair opposite her. "I'm sorry I wasn't around to see you wake up."

"It's okay. I know you're busy. I'm just one girl from a depressing small town on the border, and you're an FBI agent. Honestly, I wouldn't blame you if you forget about me." She spoke the words in a joking manner, but he could sense the pain behind them.

"Never, Audrey." Cooper reached out and took one of her hands in his. "Never. There's a place in my heart that will always belong to Twin Peaks, and to you. That hasn't changed."

She traced the lines on his palm. "Is that the only thing that hasn't changed?"

He smiled. "What do you mean?"

"We've both been through a lot since last saw each other." Audrey looked at him searchingly. "We're different people, now. Different than we were in the hotel room, the time you found me in your bed. You remember that night?"

"Of course." Cooper could still recall the sight of her bare shoulders, and the tears running down her cheeks. She wasn't wrong; the girl that had been under his covers that night was another being entirely to the one now reclining on his sofa. "We had fries and shakes. It was a wonderful time."

"Sure. I mean, it was. It's just...the things you said to me, before the shakes. About why we couldn't love each other."

Cooper sighed. "Audrey..."

"No." She sat up, glaring fiercely. "Don't talk to me like I'm still that little girl, Agent Cooper. I swear I'll leave if you do. No matter how much it hurts me, I'll leave. You're going to listen to me, now, and you're gonna listen closely."

He swallowed. Cooper sensed he was on the boundary of something dangerous, and continuing on this course of action could have lasting consequences. _And so what? Would it be so horrible, just to hear what Audrey has to say?_ He couldn't deny the facts: his heart had been beating faster ever since he opened the front door to find her waiting for him. And the pure sensation of holding Audrey in his arms, the scent of her perfume…

"I'm sorry," Cooper said. "Please. Say what you want to."

"I'm nineteen years old, now." Audrey crossed her arms. "I'm done with high school. By all standards of society, I'm a grown woman. I've met all kinds of people since that night, and done all sorts of things. I've been kissed, punched, shot at, drugged, and kidnapped. I've suffered for my beliefs, just like you have. I was fucking blown up, Agent Cooper. I've definitely lived more life than my father has. What else do you want from me?"

"That certainly is a...persuasive argument, to say the least. I won't deny your strength, Audrey. I've met hardened field agents that couldn't have withstood what you did. But I have a question for you, in return." Cooper leaned forward, studying her intently. "What is it that _you_ want from _me?_ "

"You know," she whispered. "Of course you know. Forget the FBI, and my father, and all the other little people in Twin Peaks who might judge us. I waited for you, Cooper. I bled for you. I tried being with other men, but they just disappointed me. It's always been you, ever since we first met in the Great Northern."

And all of a sudden, Cooper found himself out of good reasons to deny her. Annie was gone, and she wasn't coming back. He was alone, and so was Audrey, and would the world be made worse by two lonely adults finally surrendering to their feelings towards each other, in a cozy house in the woods of Twin Peaks? _No. We deserve to be happy, after all that's happened. There's nothing wrong in this._

"Audrey," he said softly. His hands were trembling.

She swallowed, her eyes wet with unshed tears. "Yeah?"

"You're beautiful, intelligent, desirable. And so, so strong. I love you, Audrey. It would be my pleasure to share my life with you."

"Oh, good," Audrey sniffed, grinning madly. "Cause I lied earlier, about having a house nearby. I don't know what I would've done if you said no. I love you too, Cooper."

He laughed and fell onto the couch next to her, so her head was resting against his chest. He threw a balled up sock at the switch to turn the lights off, so only moonlight from the window fell on them. _Am I dreaming?_ Cooper had never imagined a day could end so well. Audrey fell asleep in his arms, softly breathing in and out. There was no fire in the stove, but for now they didn't seem to need it. Cooper sighed happily, pulled Audrey close, and surrendered to oblivion with a smile on his lips.


End file.
